GMB - What is the feeling and responsibility of
being the new president of CBTH, succeeding a management with as many
achievements as Igor Federal?
Uelton Lima - For
me it's the most challenging moment of my poker career. But, too, it's the
happiest, the proudest moment. Especially for being in, replacing Igor, who is
a guy who left a real legacy to the poker community. We were very accustomed to
having Igor in front of the CBTH, including, until two days before, we tried to
convince him that he should continue. By statute he could continue and be
unanimous, but he convinced us that he should renew, make a transition and have
new actors fighting for our cause.
What will be your main area of action as
CBTH president? What do you think the most you can contribute?
I think one part that I can contribute a lot, which I'm very accustomed to,
is with events. My trajectory begins there in São Paulo, making a tournament of
the interior. It started by calling Circuit of the Interior, then became
Interior Poker Fest; so I know what about events, tournaments in the simplest
places or not, but places that are not in the big centers; I know what these
guys go through. And I can help a lot with this because I have a great
experience both with this and with the club. From the sporting point of view, I
think I can contribute a lot.
Will the former president of CBTH, Igor
Federal, play an important role in your management period?
Igor is not moving away from CBTH. We want him to keep playing the
political part. Continue negotiating, debating, articulating, proposing things
in this new moment of the discussion of the gaming law in the country. He has
been a very important actor in this scenario and he will continue to be.
CBTH has defended the legalization of
gaming in Brazil. Will this still be a flag of the entity? What are your
proposals for this debate?
Obviously we are in favor of legalizing gaming activity. We are late. Our
neighbors all have regulations; It does not make sense that Brazil does not.
Gaming already exists in Brazil, we need to regulate it, we will not close our
eyes to that. I will try to keep this fight, there is nothing gained, nothing
new being proposed. We are right in the middle of the discussion, much has
already been achieved, but I think the battle is still big in order to have a clear
regulation in Brazil. I think poker should be separated from other gaming
options, but that does not make them something bad for the country. There are
only good things. We will keep on defending this.
How do you see the quality of poker in
Brazil? So much in terms of technique of the players as in the organization of
events and everything that surrounds the world of poker?
The level of the Brazilian professional players has grown a lot, I will not
mention names not to end up being unfair, we have many important players
running the national circuit. We have tens, even hundreds of teams in the
country. I think there's still a lot to improve, but technically I can say a
little. From the point of view of the professionals who work on organizing
events, tournament directors, our dealers, mainly, they give show in the world.
We have the best poker professionals in the world. You go to events around the
world and feel a great lack in professionals. Brazilians are on average the
best in the world.
Diversity is a recurring issue in every
society today. Are you planning to take this to poker as well? Want to open
more space for everyone in the sport?
We have to work to increase diversity as in all sectors of society. Poker
is still a very masculine sport, for example, but the number of women plyers
has increased a lot ... it is a job that we have to do and it is being done. We
are struggling to narrow the differences.
One of the main issues that is discussed
as an argument against poker, and against gaming in general, is the issue of
addiction. How do you intend to deal with this debate? Will CBTH have a project
for this area?
I think it's our job, because if we do not talk we'll have someone talking saying
wrong things. I think it's our responsibility to discuss the issue too. But the
most difficult thing is to deal with a topic that has no sampling. We have no
numbers, no state support. A regulation is needed so that people can deal with
it and, for us,to be able to deal with this type of person who has some
disorder, difficulty, a psychological problem with the vice. We need to be able
to talk to the guy who has a compulsion to play, I think it's our job. If
there's something new that CBTH can propose, that we can talk about, that's
about it.
To conclude, speaking to the entire
poker community: players, professionals, presidents of federations and, of
course, fans of the sport; What can they expect from Uelton as the new
president of CBTH?
I will not promise the same competence as the last management. I can not
guarantee that I will be able to accomplish the same things because there have
been many battles, and I was in them. There are more than one hundred lawsuits
and we have won all of them, we have no judicial defeat. Poker has had many
victories over the last 10 years, I do not know what the next few years will
look like, I can not promise that we will always have victories. What I can
promise is the same diligence, the same will, respect with what is not mine,
not Igor's, not who to assume. It's ours, it's the poker community. And always
meet the expectations of everyone.
Source: GMB Exclusive
Author: Pedro Henrique Feitosa
